Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
4 D2 I9 N& o2 S> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
+ p, C- P$ P& v4 P1 y5 d' l> same choice?
4 |/ F) Q# B' T4 ]0 A>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
/ Q  N' G6 f6 A# G# l0 i/ [> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
. V4 B! C( X' G& v8 F  r>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
- m+ a; J2 o: }+ `! d> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
1 J2 L! r! s5 i* o2 T* ]> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
7 q+ C/ h% @: r> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
! F/ j: w9 I/ s' S' v> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
3 C- j2 S  `7 H0 U% V> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
7 }* I+ b2 o" E* [8 }$ L> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
. E; g( N7 R0 d> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
9 b* A5 V  K+ q9 u; I> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
, v5 w$ w* O' D) K9 m/ P7 t$ ]> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
7 E/ i/ t- m) W4 v2 u( Y* ]  H> inning.'
>
+ h. H% _5 Z  X> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
7 }! Y1 y5 Q1 J: n) q, l4 T) V> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
' O0 t2 K5 A- f7 D> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
5 ?5 ^0 r3 w. z* Q> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
- j& r+ B/ W* r3 I+ w7 D> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 @& o' i8 M# N% l> next at bat.
1 D; k9 s5 @' x2 x4 [>
5 r3 s& r+ F9 M% |> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
2 a2 t* {; f3 S/ T> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
$ r" t1 h; c& j! R> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
1 _0 R. I* C/ q1 e" O# H> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
! y" B) _, k- w7 ~/ A0 o* s# ~  M> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
8 \5 K' L" R( f. s( i2 B> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
8 J  X0 a& }% J$ \- h# N> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
( G! K2 A! R0 i) g, x> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
7 V4 V; v& H( Z% V> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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; Q2 H+ C) v. K0 K9 t/ a> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
9 l) o. h4 p0 o- Q$ D9 H' X> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
$ k( m1 c, H3 W/ w6 q. ^> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
8 W2 W+ T- I: Y& Q& C, T5 k/ _> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
# Y) v: v, B5 q6 r1 Z' J' R; E> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
. a$ x7 C- Q  e! k8 T9 B0 H2 L8 X> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
! p, H0 E: A2 O- b) S: z  E- m5 G7 g> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
4 v. A( k+ C# i! y' M> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
: O. G  x. U: s( F/ T> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
/ _3 j. g$ e& t3 Y% ?> circled the bases toward home.
5 u9 r  K( z9 Q6 e" |6 \$ k>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
7 g5 @, Y  T( A2 V3 T% Y* ]> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
# V: [, J, Y  \( a3 ]7 l> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
9 j4 m- Y, z! N( s$ k: h>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
0 e( A0 @  a4 v& S  g7 y# Y> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
! H3 |, }3 ^8 J0 i8 _+ U7 [> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
; _4 K3 g. w7 s> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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  \! F' X3 l3 F7 Z> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
7 D, M! A# E. D, M& L2 H7 j7 r; a> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
; _( h5 }& _, g: R> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
6 y4 n' f* r2 h+ \> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
1 J; H* j. x7 K/ H8 Y> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
- H/ L9 m% j8 o4 ]* X' y> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
* H- ?9 }4 Y0 D: L4 F4 B! I6 }( Z2 W! N> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
! j  m$ m& \, g3 ~! z: k5 R> bit colder in the process?
>
0 [4 ~% n& e( O> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
7 d1 t& W, a/ u5 d, K) J# J> You now have two choices:
) M$ p' m& X: W> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.